Untold Stories
by Rose Mistress
Summary: As threats of murders still roam around Inaba, the investigation team work their hardest to find out who's responsible. But at the same time, Naoto is holding deep feelings for Kanji but can't get through to him due to his own troubles. AU to P4 events
1. The Beginning

Zypher: Well, another day, another plot to come to my whacked out mind. Been getting into the Persona fandom and as such, have various ideas to come to mind but the one for this story is spawned from an rp I do with a friend of mine who roleplays as Naoto to me [rps Kanji]. And I do note the serious lack of NaotoxKanji stuff here so if all goes well, more will start to pop up from me. -grins- But all in all, hope you enjoy. MegaTen must live on!

Disclaimer. Don't own any of the character except for my barely to be seen OC char, Kaja. If you actually care to learn more about him, a bio shall be placed up for him in my profile eventually.

Summary: After the events of Naoto's shadow, everyone was given a moment of reprieve before continuing on with the case. But love blooms between Kanji and Naoto during the case but with past experiences, will Naoto be able to get Kanji to love again, much less get her own heart straightened out?

Warnings: Contains spoilers and is partial AU to P4 but still follows the storyline.

* * *

Untold Stories

Chapter 1

* * *

Kanji gave a sigh as he woke to another sunny day. He was glad for one thing. At least there will be no more foggy days for a while. Teddie still pestered Yosuke at Junes and got his favorite treat of topsicles while others focused with schoolwork and upcoming midterms. With a groan, he rose up from bed and got ready for school. As he walked downstairs, his mother greeted him and placed a plate of food before him. "Ma, why do you make me meals that would feed an army, huh?" he grumbled as he started to eat breakfast.

"A hearty meal is good for my growing boy."

"Ugh, enough of the motherly shit." he mumbled as he continued to eat as she started preparing his bento for school. When he was done, despite the amount he was complaining about, it was still a normal meal to his standards, he grabbed his bento, kissed his mother's cheek, and was off to school for hours wasted with lectures that he really didn't give a damn about. "Good education my ass. The only thing I benefit from it is another excuse to sleep."

"Makes it a wonder why you don't just drop out, Kanji-kun." A voice murmured from above and he stopped, turning to look over to the high wall that wrapped around a private residential area to see a pure white fox sitting there. "Yo, Kaja. What brings you out of the TV world?" he questioned. Now while it isn't normal to see a fox, especially with the resident fox that lived in the shrine, Kaja was a very special one for he wasn't really a fox at all but another protector to the TV realm. Of course, to avoid becoming the next experiment to a mad scientist (especially after the fiasco with Shadow Naoto before they defeated it), he took on said form and acted like a normal house pet. And that worked wonders with Dojima-san since he stuck around with Souji for most of the investigation up until now.

"Yeah, I would but of course, I'll be reprimanded by just about everyone if I did so I bear it." he replied as he walked on, Kaja following him from the wall. "Understandable. So how's life treating you?"

"Pretty damn good so far." Kaja chuckled before hopping down, draping himself over Kanji's shoulder. "Guess I'll stick around with you for today. I have nothing else better to do with myself and Teddie's at Junes to keep an eye on things should something go wrong." Kanji only shrugged and left the guardian to lounge there as he continued on his way to school.

* * *

At school, he greet the guys and girls, Kaja hopping from his perch and curled about Kanji's legs, watching Naoto who was watching Kanji. He may have only knew the girl briefly, seeing as she was the last addition to the team but he could just sense the feelings she held for the punk first-year. Now, whether he would see any improvement between the two, he didn't know but hopefully, something good would happen. After talking for a few, the warning bell rang and they all headed to their respective classes, promising to meet up for lunch on the rooftop.

* * *

Naoto gave a tiny sigh, her attention focused on the lesson but her mind was wandering once again to her privy matter that she pushed to the back of her mind while the case was still unsolved. Putting her work before everything else was her motto but now, she had another thing on mind and he was sitting not too far from her seating arrangement, snoozing the class away once again. _'Kanji...even though we worked together, you still pose to be quite an enigma.'_ she thought to herself.

As soon as lunch rolled around, she along with Kanji and Rise grabbed their lunches and headed up to the roof to meet with Yukiko, Chie and Yosuke. Sitting in a circle with their lunches in hand, they ate and chattered. Kanji and Naoto were the only ones who didn't really put in any input and with a devious plot in her head, she looked over to Kanji. "Hey, Kanji-kun, have you thought abut looking for a girlfriend?" That question caused him to choke on some rice and coughing to get rid of the intrusion, he sent a glare her way. "What the hell! I don't have time for that shit!"

"What do you mean you don't have the time! You have plenty of time now since the case was solved! I thought you would've found some nice girl to date! Heck, I could see you and Naoto being an item." she said, her comment now causing Naoto to choke on her drink. "I-impossible!" she declared as she looked over to the idol. She didn't note the flinch those words brought out from Kanji but he masked the reaction as quick as it came, voicing his agreement to Naoto's comment. "Aw, you both are no fun! What's life without someone there to love you?" she questioned, drinking her tea as she looked to them both.

Kanji looked away from them. "You can make a living without it. I have." he murmured, catching Naoto's attention and she watched as he gathered his things, already done with his food before saying his goodbye to the group and left. The rest were silent as they watched him go before Naoto gathered up her things as well, saying she had something to do before leaving to trail after Kanji. "Man, I didn't mean to upset him." Rise murmured, looking as if she were about to cry and Chie placed a comforting hand on her shoulder. "Don't worry. I'm sure Naoto will straighten things out with him." Chie spoke and she was still frowning but Rise nodded.

"I hope so. Now I feel bad for Kanji."

* * *

"Kanji-kun! Wait up!" Naoto called down the hall once she spotted the first year not that far ahead of her. Kanji stopped and turned to look to her. "What's up, Naoto-kun?"

"You couldn't mean what you've said. It can't be." she murmured and he huffed, turning his gaze from her. "It is and that's the story I'm sticking with. Nothing good happens for me when I'm in love so what's the point on trying to act out on it?" he explained before walking on. She frowned and continued to follow behind him. "Kanji...is there something that happened in the past that made you think that way?" He turned back to her and shook his head "Not now, Naoto. This isn't something you should concern yourself with." he said before he continued walking on. "But Kanji..."

"Enough, Naoto!" he hissed, looking back to her. She froze in place, never hearing Kanji so angry at her before. He sighed before apologizing and started making his way to class just as the bell signaling lunch rang and students started making their way back to their classrooms. "Kanji..." she murmured, looking down to the floor. "Naoto-kun, don't despair now." Kaja murmured as he appeared beside her. "I'm sure you can get through to him, just give it a little time."

"Oh, I hope you're right, Kaja. It breaks my heart to see him like this but when I don't know what's wrong, how can I help him?" she murmured as she walked on to the class she shared with Kanji and Rise, Kaja following close behind.

* * *

After school, Naoto tried to catch Kanji before he left but he was long gone before she packed up her books into her bag. "Damn it..." she hissed as she closed her bag and ran out of Yasogami high, looking around for the bleach blonde teen. Kaja followed behind her, curious as to why she was in such a rush. "What's wrong, Naoto?"

"I need to find Kanji. I wanted to talk to him but he was gone before I could catch him." she said, coming to a stop to catch her breath, feeling a little dizzy. "Don't push yourself, Naoto. You may look fine but it was only so recently that we rescued you. You could still feel some weak effects from the experience." he spoke.

"I know...I know..." she murmured, standing once more and started running towards the textile shop but before she could set foot into the shopping district, her vision became black and she fainted. "...oto!" A voice called but she was too far gone.

* * *

She groaned softly as she woke, looking around before realizing she was back home, Kaja sleeping at the foot of her bed. "What happened?" she wondered before everything started coming back to her in a rush. "That's right...I was trying to look for Kanji but fainted along the way..." she murmured. "Kaja must've helped me." She looked down to the fox at the end of her bed before giving a sigh. "Kanji..." she whispered softly before taking out her cell and dialing Kanji's number. "Please answer."

* * *

Kanji picked up his phone to see who called and seeing it was Naoto, he ignored it. He knew why she was calling and he wasn't looking forward to explaining himself. "She doesn't need to know the shit I've been through." he muttered, placing the phone off to the side as he got back to working on the little project he started on. "But maybe...just maybe, I'll tell her..."

* * *

Zypher: And that's it for the first chapter of this story. If you like it and want to see more, be my guest and give me some encouragement. If not, then this is going to the scrap heap. See ya later with a possible new chapter.


	2. First Steps into Love

Untold Stories

Chapter 2

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Throughout the rest of the day, Naoto stayed in bed with Kaja watching over her, hiding underneath the bed when her grandfather came in to bring her dinner before leaving. Naoto fed a few scraps to Kaja, looking to her cell longingly and wondered if she should try calling Kanji again. _'But most likely, he won't answer again.'_ she thought solemnly. Kaja watched her for a moment before standing. "Well, I guess I'll head back to Souji's. I hope that all goes well for you, Naoto-kun." he said and she nodded, getting up to slide open the window. "Guess I'll see you tomorrow, Kaja." she murmured and he nodded before hopping out the window and when she checked for him, he was already gone from sight.

She closed her window once more and headed over to her bed, placing her tray off to the side before getting comfortable and turned out the lights. As she laid there in bed, she knew that one way or another, she would get Kanji to open up to her. She could feel that there could be a close connection between them, she just had to work it out among their mission to stop the murderer.

* * *

When she walked to school the next day, she encountered Souji along the way and greeted him. "Hey, Naoto. Are you feeling alright? Kaja told me about what happened yesterday." he said and she chuckled softly. "I'm alright. Just pushed my limits a little too much. At least he was there for me or else I would have to worry." she replied as they reached the school and she kept a close eye out for any sign of Kanji.

"Yeah. We will need you to help us out with this case and we can't have you pushing yourself too much so soon after getting out of the mess dealing with the TV world." Souji spoke before waving to her as he headed inside and went to his class. She watched him go before hearing another call her name and turned to see Rise running over to her. They talked for a bit before heading inside when the first bell rung but as they walked, she kept looking back, hoping to see Kanji come in through the doors so she could try talking with him.

* * *

Like usual, Kanji slept through his alarm that was to wake him an hour before the first bell rung and it took his mother coming up to tell him that he was about to be late to get him up, in and out of the shower, slip on his uniform, grab his bento and kiss his mother goodbye all in the span of five minutes. Dashing down the street, he checked his watch to see how much time he had left to get to school. "Shit...only ten minutes. There's no way in hell I'm going to make it in time. Man, that teacher is going to bitch again." he muttered to himself as he stopped running and deciding to head on to school at his own set pace. When he reached the door, he heard the late bell go off and sighed, heading in and up to his class. He heard the teacher recounting the lessons from the previous day and mocked the teacher outside the door before sliding it open, catching everyone's attention. The teacher sighed, bringing out his role list and marked Kanji as there but tardy.

"Nice of you to join us, Mr. Tatsumi. Can't afford to be on time to join us for the morning greeting?"

"Ah, stuff it! I overslept. It happens every once in a while with just about everyone in here. Maybe a select few can afford to get here on time but not everybody." Kanji muttered as he headed to his seat. "Yes, some may oversleep but that doesn't call for tardiness." The teacher spoke once more. Kanji huffed, waving a hand once more as he sat and got out his things. From where she sat, Naoto had to chuckle a little as Kanji showed his typical tough guy act before covered her mouth so the teacher wouldn't know she made a sound and started taking notes when the teacher started up the lesson. The day went by with little distraction except for the occasional yell prompting a student to wake up before lunch rolled around. Kanji left his seat, bento in hand and left the room to head up to the roof. Naoto watched him before sighing, not knowing what to do now. She wanted to speak with him but also give him some space after what occurred yesterday.

Rise noticed this and decided to try and fix things her own way. "Hey, Naoto-kun! Come with me!" she said cheerfully, taking Naoto's hand and dragged her off. "H-hey! What are you doing?"she demanded as she was dragged off.

* * *

Kanji sighed as he sat on the roof, half of his lunch eaten but he couldn't will himself to eat anymore. _'Damn...I just don't know what to do anymore. Other than this murder case, I have to deal with pestering from Rise more than Naoto. But why does she care so much? She has better things to worry about than me.'_ he thought to himself. In the stairwell, Rise continued to drag Naoto along until they reached the door leading out to the roof. "Now go and talk to him!" she pressed as she opened the door and pushed Naoto through, holding the handle so she couldn't slip back in. Just as expected, Naoto tried for the knob but seeing as the door won't budge with Rise holding it, she gave a sigh, turning to see that Kanji's attention was now on her.

"Uh, hey, Naoto-kun. What are you doing up here?"

"Um...nothing. Just came to check on you." she replied softly as she walked over to him.

"Oh, I see..." he murmured. "Well, as you can see, I'm fine. Damn teacher doesn't know how to let up sometimes. Sometimes I wonder why I still come to this damn school." Naoto chuckled, taking a seat beside him and picked out a few things from his bento and ate them herself. "Typical Kanji." she murmured, smiling and happy they were back on relatively normal terms once more. "But you do know that you have to go to school. Sometimes you don't have a choice in the things you are obligated to do." He gave a derisive snort to that comment. "So? I may be obligated to come but that doesn't mean that I can't drop out and be done with it. Easiest answer in my book." he said, making Naoto sigh.

"Yeah, it isn't like I could stop you from leaving." she murmured, leaning forward and let her gaze fall to the ground. Kanji watched her before voicing out a question.

"Would you even try to stop me if I did try to leave?"

"Of course I would try, Kanji-kun. Sure, it's school and just about everyone hates coming to it six days out of a week but I wouldn't want to see you leave. But now my question is, would I be able to change your mind?" she asked softly. Kanji smiled lightly and nodded. "You are probably the only one who can. I wouldn't give a damn if it was someone else trying to stop me unless it was you or the rest of the gang but you...you just seem to be the kind of person that could lead me in the right direction when I'm lost." Naoto smiled and nodded, sitting back up to look to him before leaning over to give him a hug. Kanji froze up when that happened, the air in his lungs seeming to seize up. "You know, the more I think of it, the more I think it's true. I'm sure of it that Rise is trying to get us together." Naoto murmured.

"Y-yeah...but I don't know why they try...I don't know why they would think you would see something in a punk like me..." Naoto looked to him incredulously.

"Kanji...that's not true!" she said, standing up and looked to him. "Not everyone is out to reject you! Just give them time and they'll learn to accept you!"

"I gave them plenty of time, Naoto!" he hissed as he looked to her. She opened her mouth to say something else but shook her head and ran off, brushing past Rise who was watching the whole thing from the window of the door. Kanji sighed as he watched her run before gathering up his lunch as the bell rang and headed off to his class before his teacher gives him another reason to hate the learning facility.

* * *

As afternoon classes started, Kanji noted that Naoto never came to class after lunch. He would never expect the small detective to skip out on school but this was probably the only time that it would happen. Rise noticed this as well and even though she couldn't hear what was spoken outside, she knew that Kanji probably made a fool of himself. So with anger in her eyes, she stalked up to Kanji's desk and slammed a hand down on the surface. He jumped from the unexpected sound and looked up to Rise.

"Hey, Rise. What's up?"

"Don't 'Hey, Rise' me! What did you do?" she demanded.

"What do you mean 'what did I do'? I did nothing!"

"Then why did Naoto-kun run out of school, huh? Whatever you said to her must've made her upset and I hate seeing her that way. So get off your lazy bum and go find her!"

"Hey, how would you know of what went on?"

"I couldn't hear but I was watching from the doorway to see if you two would make any progress. Now get moving!" Rise growled, pointing to the door. "Cause if you don't make Naoto-kun feel better, I'm going to make your life a living **_hell _**for the rest of the school year." Kanji nodded quickly when he saw the evil gleam in Rise's eye. He didn't want to tempt the fates. Rise may be nice but who knew how evil she could be underneath the prim and proper idol.

* * *

Naoto sat by the river in the Samegawa floodplains, tossing pebbles in occasionally. "Kanji...why don't you understand? There is someone that accepts you for who you are..." she murmured.

"Well, from what I've witness, and it wasn't a pleasant experience mind you, it will take Kanji a while to process that." She jumped and looked to her left, seeing Kaja there only in his true form. A majestic male with ebony hair cascading down his back, white fox tail and ears still there and scythe in hand. It was a rarity to see his real self outside of Mayanoka TV but when you're a scythe toting guardian of another world, that would be raising too much suspicions and will cause too much of a disturbance than it already is in Inaba. "Kaja, what are you doing here! People will see you." Naoto hissed softly. He chuckled lightly.

"More like people will look at you when they noticed you're speaking to air." he said as he looked down to her with cheerful jade eyes. "But back to the matter at hand. It's hard for Kanji to accept things. Sure, he is accepted by Souji and the others after the ordeal at the bathhouse and his shadow but when it comes to girls, it's something completely foreign to him. It could be something from his past or something else entirely. Whatever it may be, you may just be the one to help him see."

"Do...do you really think so?" Naoto asked.

"That, Naoto, is something only the fates can decide." he spoke before he shifted back into his fox form. "I'll leave you two alone." he spoke before running off just as Kanji came into the floodplains. "Huh?" She looked up, seeing Kanji walking towards her and she looked away from him and frowned when that happened. "So...I heard Rise said you looked upset when you ran out of school...did what I say really affected you that badly, Naoto-kun?" he asked softly. She nodded. "Of course it did, Kanji-kun...but it was nothing. I-I just overreacted...don't worry about it." she murmured as she finally looked up to him. "No, I do worry, Naoto. I didn't want to make you feel bad about what I said, even though it's true."

"But, It's not true, Kanji...it isn't...I care for you. Can't you see?" she whispered. He watched her for a moment before kneeling down beside her and reached out, tugging at her uniform and she gasped as she was pulled into his arms into a hug. "I'm so sorry, Naoto...it's just so hard for me to accept things like this. The only person to truly care about me was Ma and that's what I've been used to more. No one but her could truly love me...that's what makes it so hard for me to accept shit like what you're telling me." he murmured.

"I know, Kanji-kun. I should have at least understood that much." she whispered, resting her head against his chest, one hand reaching up to grip his shirt lightly.

"But you know, after all this, I'm willing to give a shot at love...only if you'll be there to teach me the basics." he said, looking down to Naoto. She smiled, moving her head to look up to him. "Of course, Kanji-kun. I will teach you and this is the most basic of it all..." she said before leaning up, placing her lips against his in a soft kiss.

* * *

Zypher: And there we have a cliffy. Now we finally have the love blossoming between those two but know that they will be dealing with many hardships afterwards. Mind you, as Kanji, I don't make things easy for my rp partner. -evil laugh- But anyhow, thank you Blues32 as being my only reviewer for the story so far. Hope you had enjoyed this chapter and will be eagerly waiting for more. See ya later.


	3. Night at the Shirogane Estate, part 1

Untold Stories

Chapter 3

* * *

Now, to Kanji, the kiss wasn't at all unpleasant...just weird. But it felt right. Of course, it took him a couple of seconds before he actually decided to return the kiss although it was a little hesitant. Naoto smiled through the kiss, almost wanted to chuckle at how innocent Kanji was. She couldn't blame him though, this was probably his first real kiss from a girl since all other girls seemed to want to avoid him like the plague. She moved to wrap her arms around his neck, keeping up the innocent kiss for a moment longer before pulling back and smiled up to him. Kanji smiled as well before hugging her close.

"You know...I think you made me the happiest damn man in Inaba." he murmured as he rested his chin on her head. "I would probably feel jealous if some other lousy guy got to you first."

She smiled, making herself comfortable on his lap. "Good. I wouldn't want you to be jealous...besides, after everything you did to save me from my shadow, there's no doubt you'll probably kick the guy's ass if he didn't look the least bit suitable for me." she said with a soft chuckle, causing him to laugh as well. "You got that right." Naoto smiled more before looking to her watch. "School's still in session...but I don't feel like going back...I-I want to stay here with you..." she murmured.

"Really, punctual ace detective doesn't want to return to school after running off? Sounds like my attitude is rubbing off on you." he said with a smile before nodding. "But I'm not complaining. I don't think I could handle another second of that damn teacher." he said with a growl and Naoto reached up to pat his cheek gently. "Then you won't. He seems to always give you a hard time. I wonder why?"

"He just doesn't like me. I'm telling you. I'm sure he was holding a party after I went missing into the TV world." he said as he looked to the smooth flowing river. "Honestly, if I didn't already know it was going to get me expelled, I woulda punched his lights out. Show him exactly who he's messing with."

"I'm sure you would like that but don't do it, not matter how much the urge to do so is tempting you." she said. She then turned her gaze up to the clear skies, no sight of oncoming rainclouds at all. The only indication that they had to worry about the Midnight Channel. "I-it's so peaceful right now...I wish it would stay this way..."

"I know...but we still have the case to worry about. I'm sure you're not the last one that's going to show up in the TV world thanks to the murderer. Once he's apprehended and all that shit, we'll have more peaceful days like this." Naoto nodded in agreement as she leaned against Kanji's chest, enjoying the sounds of nature around them. But the one thing that she wished didn't ruin the day started pulling up from the western sky. She looked up and sighed softly. _'Great...rain just had to come on the only chance that I could have being alone with Kanji.'_

"I hope it doesn't rain all night." she murmured softly.

"Knowing our luck, it probably will." Kanji replied. "Let's go find some shelter before the downpour starts."

Naoto nodded. "Alright. My house is nearby. We can go there and stay until the rain let's up, then you can go home." Kanji agreed and they both stood before making their way over to the Shirogane estate by Naoto's lead. "I don't know if my grandfather's home or not...either way, I'll get a place set up for you just in case you'll have to stay overnight. I'll even cook dinner." Naoto said and Kanji nodded. "Sounds good. I can't wait to try out your cooking, Naoto." She smiled at his words. "Good. I assure you, my food will not turn out as bad as Chie and Yukiko that they cooked for the boys during the camp-out."

"Oh, I think I can trust you to be better than them. Yosuke-senpai told me that story and frankly, I'm glad I was with my own year at the time." he muttered and shivered at the thought of trying Mystery Food X. "Just remind me if they ever offer to cook, deny it and get the hell out before they serve it to me." Naoto chuckled and nodded as they reached the estate and she opened the huge gate with a pin and walked in. When they got into the house, she took off her shoes and set them by the door, seeing a pair were missing, indicating that her grandfather was out. "Make yourself at home, Kanji." He nodded, taking off his shoes as well and followed Naoto through the large home and soon made himself at home on the couch in the living room, bag plopping down beside him.

"S'good to be inside. Probably woulda never made it home in time before the downpour started." he murmured and like predicted, a roar of thunder was heard before the heavy rain started to pour down on Inaba. "Looks like you were right on that, Kanji." she murmured as she came to sit next to him, hands resting in her lap. She looked up to the time before looking down to Kanji. "It's still early. Everyone's probably being let out now." she murmured softly.

"Want something to snack on then? I'm starting to get a little hungry."

"Sure. The kitchen's right through that doorway. Go ahead and find something to eat."

He nodded as he stood and headed off for the kitchen. He looked through cabinets for something to munch on and soon came across some marshmallows. Such an item being in the Shirogane household was a bit of a surprise to him. Especially since the only logical person who would be eating them would be Naoto and he never pegged her as one for sweets. But he didn't deny the treat and took the bag, closing the cabinet and headed back into the living room. He plopped back down on the couch beside Naoto. "Dunno why your grandfather has these unless they were for you." he spoke as he opened the bag. Naoto chuckled softly and nodded. "Yes, they are for me. Despite my appearance, I do like sweets." she said as she looked to Kanji. "Help yourself but be sure to share some with me."

"Of course." he answered as he took one out of the bag and ate it. She watched him before taking one from the bag for herself. She really did love her sweets. Especially marshmallows. That's why her grandfather always made sure to keep a bag of them in the kitchen for her whenever she had a craving for them. "Ya know, I still would have never pegged ya as a sweets person. I might have to remember that next time I cook something at home. Just don't go telling the others or else I'll probably be working myself under with making lunches for them everyday for school." he muttered as he ate another marshmallow. She let out another soft laugh as she pulled her legs up, sitting Indian-style on the couch while her hands rested in her lap.

"Don't worry, I won't tell. That can be my own little secret." she murmured before looking down, going silent for a moment. "Then again, that's no different that how I've always been. Hiding things from everyone." Kanji looked over to her before placing a hand on her head, causing her to look up.

"We're one in the same, Naoto. We have our own share of secrets. Some that we don't wanna share. You already know that I'm a big softy but I use my tough guy exterior to keep people from finding out what I like to do." he said before removing his hand and took another marshmallow. "And same goes for you. You want to become a big shot detective but no one will let you because they want to be fucking sexist about you being a girl and thus not right for the job. So you dress and act like a boy to keep suspicions down." He took a bite into the marshmallow and left it there. Naoto continued to watch him, the resting marshmallow calling her like a tempting offer but she didn't bite the bait, knowing that an indirect kiss through the marshmallow would probably freak Kanji with its unexpectedness.

"Yes, you are right. But maybe this is the thing...the thing that will urge us to stop keeping secrets and start telling those closest to us about them. The only people that won't contradict us with how we truly are." she said, moving to rest her head against his arm. Kanji gave a nod and finished up the marshmallow. "Yeah. But I'm sure it's easy for you. For me, s'not easy." he murmured. She only shrugged, wishing she could say something to make him feel a little better but decided against it for now. She listened as the rain continued to pound on the roof of the house. "Looks like it's not letting up so you can stay here tonight."

"Are you sure? I dun wanna be a bother to you." he said as he looked down to her.

"You won't be a bother at all. We have enough room to accommodate someone for the night." she said before moving to stand. "I can fetch some of my grandfather's old clothes for you to wear if you need something to change into." He nodded as he stood. "Aright then/ I'll pass on the clothes though. I'll sleep in what I have and wake up early 'nough to get back home to change. Rain or not." Naoto nodded as she crossed her arms. "I just remember that tomorrow Aged Day so we don't have to worry about school tomorrow."

"Really...shit. Well, at least we won't have ta worry about that hellhole we call school tomorrow. Good enough time for me to relax." he said with a laugh as he plopped back down onto the couch, taking the bag of marshmallows and eating another two or three, looking up to Naoto. "Yes. Holidays is also when my grandfather stays out." she whispered, rubbing at her arm lightly. Kanji nodded, swallowing what was in his mouth before speaking.

"Are you usually left home alone like this all the time?"

"Yes. He has a lot of work sometimes so he rarely is able to make it home for a nice dinner or something. It's almost like Dojima-san."

"I see..." he murmured, looking down as Naoto came to sit next to him once again. "Well, if ya ever need some company, just give me a call and I'll come over." he said, taking out another marshmallow and held it out to her. Naoto looked up to him before smiling and took the marshmallow. "That sounds nice. It's get lonely staying here all alone after so long." He nodded and took another marshmallow. "Yep, just call and I'll come over. I'll even cook for ya if you want me to." he said. Naoto looked to him, a bit surprised but didn't deny the fact. Taking care of his mother and all would benefit him a little with becoming a family man. just a shame that no one seems to see that in him except for her.

"I didn't know you cook, Kanji-kun. Well, I would've expected much but still, its a bit surprising to hear." she said and he chuckled softly as he looked down to the ground, arms crossed over his legs.

"Yeah, I cook. I clean, I help Ma around the shop and house. You think with all this stuff, it would make some girl happy before I met with you but that proved to be a bust. Every girl that knew me just thought I was a freak for doing chores and shit looking the way I do." he muttered. Naoto frowned as she placed a hand over his. "Kanji...I told you that I don't mind anything you do. So what if no girls see you for what you're capable of. I do and that should matter most."

He chuckled and nodded. "I know." he said as he smiled down to her. "Ya know, I still can't believe I have a chance like this. Honestly, I thought I would be alone for the rest of my life."

"Of course." she replied. "You know...Rise took me on a shopping trip and got me some new clothes."

Kanji cringed at the thought of shopping with the idol. "Really? Sounds nice but sometimes, I don't trust that woman's choice of clothing." A good example, her outfit for him for the "Miss" Yasogami pageant. He still didn't know why the girls roped him into that. He wasn't the best idea to put into a cross-dressing pageant. Yosuke, Souji and Teddie beat him clearly in that department. She chuckled softly and shook her head. "She behaved herself while I with her and she picked out some nice clothes for me. I...I could wear one for you if you want to see." Kanji shook his head in reply.

"Oh? Well let's see one. That's if you seriously want to show one of your outfits to me. You don't have to if you don't really want to." he said, knowing of the girl's dislike for wearing any female clothing. "I don't mind, Kanji-kun." she replied as she stood after placing a soft kiss onto his cheek and headed upstairs to fetch the dress she wanted to present to him. She smiled as she pulled out the dress. It was a white and black dress with simple little patterns and it came with a hat. Rise gotten a matching one but instead of a hat, she got decorated bands that matched the dress. She smiled as she looked at herself in the mirror before heading back downstairs. She moved to stand before Kanji and he looked up before whistling appreciatively. "Wow, Naoto...it looks great on you." he said and she smiled, blushing a little.

"Y-you really think so, Kanji-kun?"

"Well yeah. Not only that but I know so. You really are beautiful and makes me happy to know that I was able to deserve someone as great as you." he said. She smiled even more before moving to sit on his lap and rested her back against his chest. "Then maybe I'll keep it on just for you, Kanji-kun..."

He blushed a little as he nodded. "S-sure...if you r-really want to..." he stuttered.

He kept his arms at his sides as he leaned back against the couch. He knew he really didn't have anything to worry about but sometimes, he just didn't know how to react in the moment. Naoto bit her lip when Kanji didn't do anything. She knew how hard it was for the other to show some sort of affection on certain occasion and she was the only one who could help him change his ways and get him more comfortable. Thinking to herself for a moment, she reached down and took his hands, wrapping his arms around her waist and let his hands rest on her stomach. He jumped a little before smiling a little and let his arms rest there. She relaxed in his embrace before deciding to shift and moved his hands for a moment as she turned to face him before placing his arms around her again and moved to rest her head on his chest.

He raised his head to look down to her and smiled softly before lowering his head to place a kiss on the top of her head before resting his head there. "Naoto-kun...you just make me feel if I don't deserve you sometimes..." he whispered into blue locks.

Naoto smiled softly as she kept her head resting against his chest. "But you do deserve me, Kanji-kun...and its fairly obvious that you want me too despite how hard it is for you show it."

"I know but as long as I have you to there to help me every step of the way, I'll get over my fear and be able to date you properly without feeling so damn insecure about myself." he said and Naoto smiled as she rested a hand on his chest, gripping his shirt lightly.

"I'll do what I can to help you, Kanji-kun..."

* * *

Zypher: Well, there's another chapter for you all. Glad you all enjoyed the last chapter and hope this one was just as satisfactory. Thanks again, fellow readers, and I'll see you later with another installment of Untold Stories. Ja ne!


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